[FishDr]

I had a chance to take an extended lunch yesterday and walked around a couple of NorCo lakes. At one lake I came across this victim of the winter, washed up, partially eviscerated, and dried on the lake shore.

She was about 21.5" long (perhaps longer if her tail wasn't partially broken) and even in her dried out and eviscerated state, had a girth of 16.5". Based on a couple of online calculators, she'd have weighed at least 6.3 lbs when she still swam upright and breathed. I'm now kicking myself 'cause I didn't have the presence of mind to pull a couple of scales to see how old she was.

I wonder how often my swimbaits went swimming by her? And I wonder where her big sisters are?

 

[mrwigglestheworm]

Wow!

(that's not really what I had typed...but considering the level of respect I have for you, Doc....I left it alone)

 

[albow]

Yeah, I thought this was going to be a C&R rant!

 

[Dave M]

RIP. May he enter the gates of bass Valhalla.

 

[fishslap]

That sucks. I went to ice fish a small pond out east this winter and saw a few huge bass in the ice that winterkilled. I laid the tape over one and it looked to be over 20". Sad stuff.

 

[max power]

I'm now kicking myself 'cause I didn't have the presence of mind to pull a couple of scales to see how old she was.

How can you tell how old a fish is by the scales? Do they have growth rings like trees have?

 

[bobys]

How can you tell how old a fish is by the scales? Do they have growth rings like trees have?

Im interested in this answer also

 

[JWurgaft]

Yep that sucks. I haven't been bass fishin that much this year . To bad the flood and winter kill took out so many bass.

 

[JWurgaft]

How can you tell how old a fish is by the scales? Do they have growth rings like trees have?

Ummmmmmm I don't think so dude.

 

[Zman]

Scales are the most widely used aging structure in North America because of their non-lethal ease of collection.[7] Counting the number of annuli (rings) on a scale provides the fish age and the spacing between rings is proportional to the growth of the fish. For some examples and uses of scale aging you can go to "Fish scales tell a story..." from the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife. The ease of collection of this aging structure is not without its tradeoffs, as the major bias of scales used as an age estimation structure is their tendency to underestimate the age of older fish.[8]

The general process for scale age analysis preparation is as follows. During collection, it is important to make sure to sample the same area on the same side of each individual. Insert the scale into a scale envelope, then press on acetate slides or it can be washed in distilled water and rubbed between the fingers. Mount the scale on glass slides and dry in moderate heat, 37˚C or 100˚ F. The annuli may be counted using a microscope, microfilm reader, o

yeppers

 

[albow]

Or, you could harvest an otolith (ear bone). Considered more accurate but much more involved.

http://www.buehler-asia.com/brochure/apps_support_literature_otolith_cutting.pdf

scroll to page 28, "Assigning a birthday:"

http://books.google.com/books?id=0CVlCY2PbCMC&printsec=frontcover&dq=subject:"Otoliths"&hl=en&sa=X&ei=-sNbU7WGFuSNygHGmIDYBQ&ved=0CFMQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[lcjerkbait]

Going to miss that fat girl.

 

[tangler]

That was a big *****!